Would you do it again?

[slotzkin]

With a family of 6, for us it was a no brainer about taking the DDP. Last time we stayed offsite and spent our entire time feeling like we wanted to cry when it was time to whip out the wallet to pay for food - and we did all CS meals. This time, we're doing TS meals too (CRT, HDDR, CR, FDP, etc.) and probably paying less overall. I love knowing that it's all taken care of and I don't need to stress about sticker shock and who's not eating their entire meal, etc.

As for food being the focus of the vacation, I look at it like this. I would rather have ADR's ahead of time, have it all paid for, and just relax until it's time to show up than to use up a bunch of time stressing over where to eat, how to pay for it, and then arriving and finding out it will be a 90 minute wait stand-by because I didn't have an ADR. When that happens, food will become the focus anyway except you'll be hungry and not too happy as you're thinking about it.

I completely agree! My husband, a very fit firefighter is a huge eater and we often spend out vacation stressing out and morning over the bill that it really puts a damper on our vacations, plus we never do TS b/c he tough to fill up and would be too much $$$ We are trying DPP this May for 1st time and hoping this will make for a happier trip overall. I am a small eater so I am a bit concerned about it not beng a good deal for me and am wondering is DH will be able to eat my appitizer/dessert if i cannot? Thanks!

 

[PrincessTrisha]

We've used it 3 times and I have it booked for both trips this year.

It's simple, easy to use and I like the fact that it is prepaid.

For my family we would end up with mostly counter service and a few cheaper TS meals if not on the dining plan. This is not my ideal vacation, I like to be served and the break in an air conditioned restuarant is just right to recharge our engines.

I only eat what I want and don't to stress about "too much food".

We share counter service meals so we don't feel overly full while going around the parks during the day but rarely end up using many snacks - and still it's a good deal for us.

 

[sandys]

Wouldn't leave home without it

 

[jjenniboo]

My family and I went last Sept (8 of us) and we loved the DDP. Besides the fact that it was free last year it was so nice not having to worry about cost and we were able to sample so many different restaurants that we probably wouldn't have tried.

My DH, DD, and myself are going back the end of this August and I have already booked the dining plan. It would be even better if it was free again though.

 

[klinlin]

I completely agree! My husband, a very fit firefighter is a huge eater and we often spend out vacation stressing out and morning over the bill that it really puts a damper on our vacations, plus we never do TS b/c he tough to fill up and would be too much $$$ We are trying DPP this May for 1st time and hoping this will make for a happier trip overall. I am a small eater so I am a bit concerned about it not beng a good deal for me and am wondering is DH will be able to eat my appitizer/dessert if i cannot? Thanks!

If you are all using a TS credit, you will have no problem "sharing" your meal with your husband. The food police will not go after you! Have a great, stress free, vacation!

 

[cmwade77]

I don't think I would go to Disney World without the dining plan, as long as they are still offering it.

 

[mamaprincess]

We did not buy any food out of pocket. I really can't see how one CS and one TS per day, could ever be considered too much food.

My thoughts exactly! If you eat a light breakfast and then dinner and if you have some sort of snack in between breakfast and dinner at home, then it is a regular amount of food.

We tended to use our CS credits for and early lunch (breakfast) or a traditional breakfast. Then we would have something we wanted like a mickey bar or something, then we'd have dinner.

 

[cdnsluvdisney]

We love it and do it every time we go! It's great to have it paid up front so you know your budget. It's worry free. We also eat at some places we probably wouldn't normally (because of cost) and order items on the menu we otherwise wouldn't if we had to watch our dollars.

 

[Donaldsfan176]

We will be using the DDP for the first time this year. What sold me is the fact that we can try different restaurants that we normally coudn't afford.

For the past couple years we have been going to a family resort in Canada. The price we pay for those trips included all meals for the entire time of your stay. Now I will admit it is quite a bit of food BUT...if I was still full grom lunch I would take it easy for dinner.

I personally think that a "prepaid" vacation is the way to go.

 

[pixistix]

We got the DDP last August for free. We enjoyed trying TS restaurants and not having to think about budgeting for food. However, looking back, we missed out on a lot of park time because we had to allow for time for sit-down TS meals, traveling to and fro and making sure we were in the park where are ADR was.
Not doing DDP this trip, but if it was free, it would be tough to resist.

 

[disneyjunkie]

As for food being the focus of the vacation, I look at it like this. I would rather have ADR's ahead of time, have it all paid for, and just relax until it's time to show up than to use up a bunch of time stressing over where to eat, how to pay for it, and then arriving and finding out it will be a 90 minute wait stand-by because I didn't have an ADR. When that happens, food will become the focus anyway except you'll be hungry and not too happy as you're thinking about it.

We love the DDP. Sure it's a lot of food, but noone's forcing you to order/eat everything that's include with the plan.

When my son and I were on the plan, we skipped many desserts and appetizers. Even without maxing out the plan, it was a great deal.

 

[slk537]

We did it last May for the first time now that DVC members are allowed and we loved it. It was so nice being able to pay for our food in advance and just not worry about it. We were also there right after they expanded the snack options and that was great!

We are TS people - love having that "event" at the end of our day to look forward to. Since we typically plan a trip every 6 months to a year, we don't feel any pressure of being away from the rides and the TS experience becomes part of the vacation experience.

Did we save money? I think so. Did we order different things and eat more TS than we did when we just used the DDE? Yes. But it was so nice to just order something we weren't sure about and shrug it off if it didn't meet our expectations. And did we eat a lot more? I don't know. I know we stopped eating our appetizers or entrees if we were full (sorry, but I love desserts and would save room for those!) and take the food back to the room. CS meals were almost always shared among the three of us. And we had plenty of snacks left - we ended up using about 6 of them to buy gift type items to bring home.

In a word, to us the DDP is: FUN! Paid in advance, spontaneous choices, and lots of meals on property. We're signed up again in May and we are very much looking forward to that part of our trip.

 

[punkin1763]

Even though I love the DDP, it does take planning to use the TS meals. We had the same issue others have mentioned - trying to coordinate your meal time with your park time. It would be hard to turn down if it was free again, but I think we are more spur of the moment people. It was great to try places we normally wouldn't try and not having to worry about taking money for food was wonderful! I think you have to decide what matters most to you and how structured you want your trip to be. Like I said - I would definitely do it again if it was free. I wish there were more options - like customizing the plan to only a certain number of TS meals and then the rest CS & snacks. We could handle two or three TS meals in a 10 day trip and the rest CS. Just a thought.......

 

[PaulaSB12]

I got the ddp plan free last year for a 15 day holiday. I have got it free again (uk promotion) for 21 days time. I LOVE the DDP, I go solo which leaves out sharing, so I have a snack for breakfast, a cs for lunch and a ts for a late supper. No worrying about tips either (not keen on tipping but inthe UK many resteraunts charge a service charge and STILL leave a space for a tip, that and they have to be on minimum wage doesn't make me want to tip).

 

[bookgirl2632]

I love the DDP. I've gotten it twice now (originally, through the Discovery Magic Package) and loved it both times. First of all, I love the convenience of it. The fact that it's already paid for is a big plus for me. Second, I don't mind the planning. That's part of the fun for me. Third, I like a leisurely sit-down meal. It makes for a nice rest after walking the parks all day. And last, I don't have to worry about prices on the menu. For me, that's the best part. I wouldn't have ordered many of the things I've gotten if it wasn't for the DDP.

So, yeah, as long as they have the DDP, I will get it everytime.

 

[castleri]

I got the ddp plan free last year for a 15 day holiday. I have got it free again (uk promotion) for 21 days time. I LOVE the DDP, I go solo which leaves out sharing, so I have a snack for breakfast, a cs for lunch and a ts for a late supper. No worrying about tips either (not keen on tipping but inthe UK many resteraunts charge a service charge and STILL leave a space for a tip, that and they have to be on minimum wage doesn't make me want to tip).

Including the tip is good for the waiters/waitresses as many feel as you do about tipping and don't realize that in most cases in the US servers work for $2.30-$ 4 an hour (not even minimum wage in most states) plus tips. Many end up with no take home pay in a check because of the taxes taken out based on their sales for their shift even if they were not tipped. My daughter has been doing this for 24 years now (second job) and often has no money in her check so if she is also left no tip or a very small one because tipping is not common in the customer's home country she can have very little pay at all that week. Over time it does even out which is why she keeps doing it.

 

[PaulaSB12]

Including the tip is good for the waiters/waitresses as many feel as you do about tipping and don't realize that in most cases in the US servers work for $2.30-$ 4 an hour (not even minimum wage in most states) plus tips. Many end up with no take home pay in a check because of the taxes taken out based on their sales for their shift even if they were not tipped. My daughter has been doing this for 24 years now (second job) and often has no money in her check so if she is also left no tip or a very small one because tipping is not common in the customer's home country she can have very little pay at all that week. Over time it does even out which is why she keeps doing it.

I have always tipped what I was told was appropriate, I was just explaining why some of us don't like tipping in a resteraunt wher you are given a service charge and then they want a tip on top of that.

 

[islandmum]

I am loving the DDP idea - HUGE choice of places to eat, incredibly varied for the TS. We're planning on using the CS's for lunch at days in the parks and rest days we'll use the CS for breakfast. I see the kids menu at alot of CS places in the parks is very limited and much the same but if you search - and I do mean SEARCH, you can find that each day they can get something different that they will probably like and then can always use a snack credit for something else if they dont. Also plan to use snack credits for some mornings breakfasts as we've heard things like the bagels and pastrys are big enough for that.

Using the DDP has meant alot of time and effort on the internet searching for the "right" places to go and also spreading our food out as we're not the biggest eaters but at $39 a day - its DEFINATELY cheaper than paying in cash and then adding tax and credits.

its done, its paid for, we can sleep easy knowing we can blow the rest on things to buy rather than denying ourselves that special steak to pay for the mickey t-shirt!

 

[MissMichelle]

I won't do Disney without it! I don't know how I ever did it before---Oh right, I didn't do half the sit down meals I get to do now

And a question for those who say it is too much...What do you think of all inclusive vacations? Do you feel that since the food is there and available that you are forced to eat it? Not trying to start a riot or be rude (I know it could be taken that way) but I am truly curious. I like knowing it is all taken care of, no worries

 

[warriorboy648]

I love all the input!!! This has been the biggest debate our family has ever had. I think we have put more thought into whether to get the DDP than how many kids to have!!! Getting the DDP is actually the easy part. Definitely a good opportunity with a family of 7. The hard part is do we give up our super price at the Swan to stay at a mod in order to get the DDP. If it would just be offered for free, life would be easier and I could move on to obsessing about something else.